Essay from the year 2007 in the subject Sociology - Gender Studies, grade: 84%, University of Auckland (Department of Sociology), course: Family, Women and the State, language: English, abstract: Rates of cohabitation are rising throughout the Western world as a precursor, a substitute or a successor of marriage. However, compared to legal marriage, women and children seem to be worse off in those living arrangements for several reasons. Therefore, this paper sought to explore the impacts of cohabitation on women and children and how different jurisdictions responded to the rising rates of cohabitation.